The hot dog cart is coming back to Westborn Mall.

We wrote about the dog stand being asked to move back in April but now the Westborn Mall owner and tenants have found a way to bring the cart back.

In a press release issued by Westborn Mall, the owner reports that Anna Ford, owner of the hot dog cart, and the owner of the Red Olive restaurant have worked out a way for both to operate in the mall.

Westborn Mall owner Tom Petzold took action to bring the cart back after customer complaints.

“This has really opened my eyes. I never intended to break the good will we have been striving for many decades to build in this community,” said Petzold, whose family has managed Westborn Mall for more than 40 years. Realizing that his decision was affecting shoppers and tenants including Red Olive, the new restaurant tenant unfairly taking the most criticism, Petzold said he knew he had to act.

Petzold called Pete Goulas, owner of Red Olive with 10 restaurants in the Detroit metro area, to talk about a possible solution. Both their companies had made substantial investments to bring the family restaurant to Dearborn.

To satisfy the shopping center’s customers who missed Ford’s hot dog cart, Petzold then called Ford with his idea. He knew her to be an astute business woman from their temporary rent free agreement set up two years earlier when the hot dog cart first came to the shopping center’s parking lot, the statement indicated.

“I asked Anna if she’d be willing to bring the hot dog cart back to the parking lot and pay a nominal rent that Westborn Mall would donate to local charities that she designated,” said Petzold.

Ford, a lifelong resident of Dearborn, readily agreed and designated both the Dearborn Historical Museum and the Dearborn Animal Shelter.

So if you stop by the mall today, the dog cart is open for business.

We heard the rumors and now we can report it as fact.

After 60 years at the corner of Michigan and Monroe, Dearborn Music is moving into a Dearborn strip mall three blocks west of its current location.

Dearborn Music is moving to a new location after 56 years in business and 53 years at the corner of Michigan and Monroe.

That leaves another prime corner of real estate on Michigan Avenue vacant. The building directly across from Dearborn Music is also vacant. Both properties are owned by Hakim Fakhoury.

Dearborn Music will move next door to the upcoming Goodwill store in what formerly housed Pier 1. The property is owned by Norm Newman. The new location certainly won’t offer the charm of the old historic place they were in but it will offer free parking.

This is a big move for Dearborn Music and we wish them the best. Moving to a new location after 60 years in one spot wasn’t an easy decision and there is no guarantee they will have the success in a new space, particularly without the Michigan Avenue traffic.

We wish them all the best in the Norm Newman building.

Free Comic Book Day 2012 at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn will feature more guest comic creators then ever before, a workshop area, and lots of ways to get FREE specially marked comic books.​

Green Brain Comics store owner Dan Merritt says this upcoming Free Comic Book Day will be the biggest celebration ever. “It’s outgrown the store,” said Merritt, the coordinator for the event.  “So we’re planning an expansion into the parking lot and essentially doubling the fun!”

​This year Green Brain Comics is partnering with Oakwood Healthcare Systems, the East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority and Kids Read Comics to provide a huge tent to house a host of local comic creators, local vendors, and a comic workshop area for kids of all ages. ​And you get free comics, Merritt said.

Inside the store, Green Brain Comics will be giving away thousands of comics printed specifically for Free Comic Book Day. Everyone who comes in gets the choice of three, from a selection of over three dozen different titles. Plus, you can get up to four more by donating non-perishable canned food (for Gleaners Food Bank), used cell phones (for Cell Phones for Soldiers), gently used books (for Friends of the Library Dearborn) or just for appearing in costume, Merritt said.

​There will be live music, DJs, door prizes and even a photo booth.

​Free Comic Book Day kicks off at 10 a.m. and runs until 8 p.m. Saturday, May 5th at Green Brain Comics, 13210 Michigan Ave. East Downtown Dearborn. Call 313-582-9444 or got to www.greenbrain.biz for more information.

For a look at the complete guest list so far, click below.

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Elena's Mexican Carry-out is now open for business. The restaurant is located at 24142 Michigan Ave.

Dearborn residents looking for a new place for authentic carry-out Mexican food can now visit Elena’s Mexican Carry-out in west Dearborn.

Elena’s is located at 24142 Michigan Ave., just west of Telegraph on the north side of Michigan Avenue. It is in the building that formerly housed a Thai food restaurant and before that a deli called Harley’s.

Alex Flores and his mother Phyllis are hopeful their new restaurant will prove to be more attractive to the taste buds of Dearbornites and nearby businesses. Judging from what is on the menu, it would appear Flores has the right stuff.

Flores says all of the recipes at Elena’s are from his grandmother. Everything is made fresh daily, right down to the salsa that his mother Phyllis makes each morning.

The restaurant opened last Wednesday and for now will be carry-out only. In the future, the restaurant could expand into the building next door should a dining option be needed, Flores said.

Hours are Monday-Thursday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to midnight. The restaurant is closed on Sunday. For now, Elena’s will not offer food delivery.

On Monday, the restaurant offers $1 deep fried beef tacos. Lunch specials are Monday-Friday until 2 p.m. For $7, patrons have the choice of either two tacos, flautas, enchiladas or tamales, along with rice, beans and a 12 oz. soda.

For more information you can call the restaurant at 313-768-5211.

Dearborn’s popular L.A. Bistro has now officially moved to its new location and is now open for business.

L.A. Bistro owner Samih Johair moved his popular eatery into the Nichols Ski and Snowboard building, about one block east on Michigan Avenue from its original home. The ski shop shifted its current business over in their current space to make room for the restaurant.

Johair has done a fantastic job of renovating the space into an attractive and progressive setting, investing several hundred thousand dollars into the space. The official grand opening is still coming but the restaurant is now open for business.

The new location, 22018 Michigan Ave., nearly triples the size of the original L.A. Bistro. The location is much more picturesque and because it is located next to Cheli’s Chili Bar and Nichols will likely see a lot more traffic.

We wish L. A. Bistro the best of luck in its new home. It’s a great edition to downtown west Dearborn. For more info, call 313-277-5999.

A 12-year vision of expanded Michigan passenger rail options moved closer to reality on April 10 at a high-profile construction launch ceremony for the City of Dearborn’s new Intermodal Passenger Rail Station.

Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. welcomed 80 key leaders, including U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, Congressman John Dingell, Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Szabo, Michigan Department of Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle, and Amtrak Chairman of the Board Tom Carper, as well as transportation and industry officials.

The ceremony was hosted by Patricia E. Mooradian, President of The Henry Ford, where the event took place.

The ceremony celebrated the collaborative milestone marking the beginning of the construction of this $28.2 million federally-funded station, to be built at 20201 W. Michigan Avenue, west of the Southfield Freeway at the entrance to Dearborn’s west downtown.

The ceremony was held at Greenfield Village within The Henry Ford because the station will be built adjacent to this national Historic Landmark site and will provide improved access to the visitor attraction for passengers arriving by train.

At the April 10 launch, invited guests gathered at the historic Smiths Creek Depot inside Greenfield Village to hear details about the dramatic progress expected, and to receive thanks for their support.

A view of the new train station from Michigan Avenue.

The vision for an Intermodal Station

The pedestrian-friendly Dearborn Intermodal Passenger Rail Station will serve as a rail gateway to Dearborn and southeast Michigan.

The important transportation link will allow thousands of passengers per year to make connections to Amtrak’s Wolverine service that extends from Pontiac to Chicago; as well as to SMART, DDOT, Greyhound and charter buses; corporate and hotel shuttles; taxis and personal vehicles.

The station is positioned to support the eventual operation of the Detroit to Chicago High Speed Rail Corridor, which already has seen progress in western Michigan.

It will also serve the proposed Ann Arbor to Detroit commuter rail line. Eventually, the commuter rail line will allow easy bus connection to the Detroit Metropolitan Airport.

The station’s proximity to the Rouge River Gateway Trail on the north side of Michigan Avenue in Dearborn should prove popular to pedestrians and bicyclists and provide easy access to the campuses of the University of Michigan-Dearborn and Henry Ford Community College.

MDOT Director Kirk Steudle, Patricia Mooradian of The Henry Ford, Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly, U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, Congressman John Dingell, Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Szabo, and Amtrak Chairman Tom Carper unveil a drawing of the new Dearborn Intermodal Passenger Rail Station.

Construction timeline

Preliminary work began in March with utility alterations on the construction site and completion is expected by fall 2013.

As the construction progresses, people traveling down Michigan Avenue will see the intermodal station evolve from a bare footprint to a beautiful two-story brick and glass structure surrounded by ponds and appealing landscaping.

The 16,000-square-foot intermodal station will offer amenities like free WI-FI and bicycle racks.

Also incorporated inside will be exhibits by the City of Dearborn, Ford Motor Co., The Henry Ford, Pure Michigan and others.

The site at 20201 Michigan Avenue had been previously used for the storage of vehicles.

Jobs

It’s estimated that the intermodal station project will create 280 temporary construction trade positions and, when completed, potentially offer 25 permanent positions.

View of the new train station from The Henry Ford.

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The Dearborn City Plan Commission voted 5 to 4 Monday night and approved a request for a special land use from Goodwill Industries to open a second-hand thrift store in downtown West Dearborn.

The thrift store now heads to the zoning board to obtain final approval.

For earlier story, click HERE.

Jane Ford serves up a hot dog in the parking lot of ACO Hardware in Dearborn. The family had to pack up its second hot dog stand down the road at Westborn Mall at the request of the mall's owner.

After nearly two and a half years of selling hot dogs from her cart outside the Dearborn post office in the Westborn Mall, Anna Ford has been told by the mall’s owner to push on out.

Most Dearborn residents know Anna Ford from her more than 25 years of selling hot dogs from her cart outside of ACO on Michigan Avenue, just west of Military Street. Her Binky’s Hot Dog and Sausage stand has been selling Dearborn Sausage brand hot dogs and Detroit’s Better Made chips in the parking lot of the hardware store for seven days a week without incident.

But that apparently wasn’t the case in Westborn Mall. Anna Ford tells DeepsaidWhat.com that the owners of the recently opened Red Olive restaurant in the mall, who offer coney dogs on their menu, apparently viewed the hot dog stand as competition. Although Binky’s does not sell coney toppings for its hot dogs, the owner of Westborn Mall told them they had to leave, she said.

“I do wish the Red Olive well,” Anna Ford said. “It is tough to starting a new business. I have no animosity toward Westborn Mall or the Red Olive. I just think that some of the workers in the mall don’t have time to go out to a sit-down restaurant. Running to my stand is just easier for some of those people with limited time. I just wish it could have worked out for all of us. I don’t think our businesses compete.”

While Binky’s Hot Dog stand didn’t pay rent for sitting in Westborn Mall’s parking lot, it is hard to view the hot dog cart as competition for the restaurant, which offers a full menu that goes beyond hot dogs and chips.

The former Brothers Tuxedo in downtown west Dearborn is now razed.

A dilapidated building in downtown west Dearborn that once was home to Brothers Tuxedo has finally been razed.

Crews began demolishing the building on Friday and by Saturday afternoon all that remained of the two-story brick building was a pile of rubble.

While it has taken years to remove this Dearborn eyesore, the good news is that it is now finally down. And with a clean plot of land on a prime corner of downtown Dearborn there comes hope that it will become something more than just another grassy space.

The building is the second of three dilapidated buildings that Dearborn developer Hakim Fakhoury agreed with city officials would come down. The third building, Bally’s Vic Tanny, is still being prepared for demolition.

The former Brothers Tuxedo building at Michigan and Howard before demolition.

As part of the agreement with the city and a way to save demolition costs, the foundation of the Brothers Tuxedo building, just like the former Giuliano’s, will remain until the property is ready to be developed.

The three buildings, all located between Mason and Military on Michigan Avenue, were being removed as part of a large-scale redevelopment proposed in 2005 by Fakhoury.

That particular development never occurred but clearing the area of these rotting buildings is a step in the right direction.

Best Buy is beginning to acknowledge that its big-box business model, which dominated electronics retailing for much of the past two decades, is no longer working.

The electronics chain said it would close 50 big-box stores this year, test new store formats in San Antonio and Minneapolis, and lay off 400 corporate and support workers as part of a plan to trim $800 million in costs and restructure its ailing business.

It isn’t clear what that means for the Best Buy store on Ford Road and Mercury Drive in Dearborn but the hope here is that it will survive this round of store closures.

The company outlined the following moves:

• It will cut $800 million in costs by fiscal 2015.

• Close 50 big-box stores this fiscal year.

• Open 100 Best Buy Mobile and small stores this year.

• Boost online revenue by 15 percent.

• And Best Buy will change its employee compensation model to revolve around customer service and business goals.